Surgical teams at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Chicago, are decreasing the rate of urinary tract infection (UTI) in their institution by paying scrupulous attention to the use of catheters before and immediately after ...

A systematic evidence review published in Annals of Internal Medicine suggests that cognitive decline following regularly performed invasive heart procedures may be uncommon in older adults. However, researchers stress that ...

(HealthDay)—Most patients experience benefit after three or more catheter ablation procedures for atrial fibrillation (AF), according to a study published in the April issue of the Journal of Cardiovascular Electrophysiology.

The use of continuous positive airway pressure was associated with a significant reduction in the recurrence of atrial fibrillation in patients with obstructive sleep apnea, according to an analysis of data from past research ...

Catheter-related bloodstream infection is the most prevalent and severe complication for patients who receive parenteral nutrition therapy at home. A new study by researchers at Aalborg University in Denmark examined whether ...

Among patients with heart failure and atrial fibrillation, those who underwent catheter ablation were less likely to die, be hospitalized or have recurrent atrial fibrillation than patients taking a heart rhythm regulating ...

Catheter

In medicine a catheter is a tube that can be inserted into a body cavity, duct or vessel. Catheters thereby allow drainage, injection of fluids or access by surgical instruments. The process of inserting a catheter is catheterization. In most uses a catheter is a thin, flexible tube ("soft" catheter), although in some uses it is a larger, solid tube ("hard" catheter). A catheter left inside the body, either temporarily or permanently, may be referred to as an indwelling catheter. A permanently inserted catheter may be referred to as a permcath.

The ancient Syrians created catheters from reeds. "Katheter" originally referred to an instrument that was inserted such as a plug. The word "katheter" in turn came from "kathiemai" meaning "to sound" with a probe. The ancient Greeks inserted a hollow metal tube through the urethra into the bladder to empty it and the tube came to be known as a "katheter".